ROGER VAN DAMME What you hold in your hands right now may be my greatest achievement ever. You could call it my culinary biography, although I do hope to add many more chapters to my career in the years to come. Together with an entire team, I spent two years pouring my heart and soul into this book. As with cooking, a good book takes time. And the result is one of the best. I say that with humility, although there’s nothing wrong with a healthy dose of professional pride, right? I hope that you will feel the passion in these pages. Most of all, I hope that they will inspire you, the reader. The biggest compliment that I can think of is that you will try my recipes for yourself. Enjoy the result—a beautiful dish—but also enjoy the journey towards creating that dish. That is what I have done over the years. In this cookbook, you will not only find recipes, but also a story. I will take you on a journey to meet the great chefs who have inspired me over the past quarter century. All of them have contributed in their own way to who I am today. The culinary signature I have developed is in large part thanks to the culinary giants who have crossed my path. I wish you plenty of cooking pleasure and moreover, plenty of loving people around you with whom to share these culinary delights.
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CONTENTS Bio 8 The team 31 The Sagrada Familia and the Eiffel Tower
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Barcelona, a culinary Mecca 82 Albert Adria and the Modernist Kitchen 84 Carles Abellan, Reinventor of the Tapas 86 Roca, a Resounding Family Name 88 Berasategui and Arola, Culinary Artists 92 Today 94 Tomorrowland 179 Paris, Pastry Paradise Roger’s Sweet Route Strolling along Rue Montorgueil French pastry French Bread and More Paris, Europe’s Restaurant Hermé’s Macarons La pâtisserie des rèves Des gâteaux et du pain
252 254 264 270 288 298 330 352 368
Acknowledgements 378 Product list
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Soleil 12 Sunny Side Up 20 Lemon Squash 24 Macarons and Caviar 36 Strawberries from Hoogstraten 40 Lucky Egg 48 Ice Cream Sandwich 52 Strawberry Ribbon 60 Chocolate Art 70 Red Fruit Flower 76 Krupuk 100 Dutch Apple Pie 104 Strawberry Rhubarb 112 Pomme Pomme 120 Cherries 130 Olor Verde 136 Black Circle 142 Mango Cheese Pomelo 148 The Raspberry Princess 154 Half Moon 158 Café Glacé 164 Falling Leaf 170 The World of Tomorrowland 174 World of Butterflies 180 Figs 188 Summertime 192 Crème Brûlée 200 Chocolate Delight 202 Orelys 208 Dame Blanche 2.0 218 Grated Fig 228 Apricot 234 Fashion on the Comedy Place in Antwerp 238 Red Doughnut 248 Fall in the Forest 258 White Truffle 266 Paris Brest 272 Burj Khalifa 282 Fritters from Desirée 290 White and Gold 294 Akina 300 Tiramisu 308 Opera 314 Merveilleux 320 Hazelnut 324 Sticky Rice 332 Chocolate Lilies 336 Cotton Candy 340 Baba 344 Thai Exotica 348 Rock Around the Clock 354 Wheel of Fortune 362 Lava 370 Sushi Roll 374
Bio THE MENU “Chef of the Year 2010,” “Best Pastry Chef in the World 2017,” one Michelin star, a seventh book, a renowned business... the résumé of Roger van Damme (°1971, Sluis) reads like a never-ending success story, which it is. Over the course of 25 years, Roger has slowly, surely, and with careful deliberation combined all of the finest ingredients and brought them to a slow and steady simmer. In this book, he presents the exquisite product that is the end result of his hard work.
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The main course is naturally Het Gebaar, the Antwerp lunch lounge that Roger established in 1994 and which caused his career to take off. But, there is also a first course. And there are plenty of appetizers. He came across his first amuse-bouche when he was twelve years old and watched his father, who bakes cakes with an eye for perfection, with a receptive mind. “Thankfully, we clearly share the same genes,” Roger explains. From that moment onwards, he knew he wanted to train at the hotel school in Bruges, Ter Groene Poorte. On the weekends, Roger worked in a bakery in Sluis and learned the tricks of the traditional pastry trade. But, when he turned sixteen, he got fed up with the sacks of flour and spent a brief time deejaying in clubs. To his mother’s great relief, this career detour only lasted for a year before Roger returned to the world of pastry. He found work at the catering wholesaler ISPC, where he developed contacts with numerous restaurant owners. “At that time, pastry involved nothing more than basic crepes. Even slices of cake on a plate was relatively exclusive,” says Roger. He felt that he could bring new life to the pastry world and grabbed opportunity with both hands: travelling to numerous French and Spanish Michelin-starred restaurants, both to learn and to make a name for himself. Roger’s apprenticeships make a sumptuous first course. The dessert, and the icing on the cake—both proverbially and literally—is this most recent book. He and his team spent two years working on it, and it shows. The long journey has paid off and made the book complete. Roger has been given the time to integrate all his seasonal products and to see himself evolve. This book has shown him that he has become, now more than ever, a coach for his team. A coach who keeps his team in shape, but not from the sidelines; he’s right there on the field with them. 11
SOLEIL NUMBER OF SERVINGS: 4 1.
PANNA COTTA 7,5 g 37 g
gelatin powder cold water
Mix the gelatin powder with the cold water and bloom for 20 minutes.
56 g 28 g 1
milk cream vanilla bean
Heat the milk, cream and the split vanilla bean in a saucepan and infuse for 20 minutes.
82 g 56 g 28 g 15 g 11 g 210 g
cream sugar Greek yogurt lime juice yogurt powder (Yopols - Sosa) heavy or whipping cream (whipped)
Mix the cream, sugar, Greek yoghurt, lime juice and yogurt powder together thoroughly using a whisk. Strain the infusion and reheat the liquid. Dissolve the bloomed gelatin in the liquid and pour the infusion through a fine-mesh sieve onto the yogurt mixture. Whisk the mixture until smooth, then carefully fold the whipped cream into the mixture in 3 parts with a spatula.
EXTRA fine-mesh sieve piping bag silicone ring mold
Fill a piping bag with the panna cotta and fill the silicone mold. Pipe a thin layer of mango vinegar gelée into the panna cotta using a piping bag and level off. Allow the panna cotta to set overnight in the freezer. Place the frozen ring on a plate and serve once the panna cotta has defrosted.
MANGO VINEGAR GELÉE - INTERIOR
2.
40 g 30 g 50 g
almond milk passion fruit puree mango vinegar
In a saucepan, bring the almond milk, passion fruit puree and mango vinegar to a boil.
100 g 5g
sugar pectin NH
Mix the sugar together with the pectin. Add the sugar mixture to the boiling liquid and mix well with a whisk. Allow to simmer for 30 seconds. Leave the mixture to rest overnight in the refrigerator. Whisk the gelée until smooth. Fill a piping bag with the gelée and keep it in the refrigerator.
3.
PASSION FRUIT CRÉMEUX 1.2 g 6g
gelatin powder cold water
Mix the gelatin powder with the cold water and bloom for 20 minutes.
60 g 4g 7g 48 g 56 g
passion fruit puree almond milk mango puree eggs sugar
Heat both the fruit purees together with the almond milk, sugar and eggs in the Thermomix to 84 °C (183 °F). Add the bloomed gelatin to the warm mixture and allow it to cool to 37 °C (98.6 °F).
32 g 32 g
butter (softened) mascarpone
Add the softened butter in three parts, mixing the butter in the Thermomix at medium speed. Finally, fold the mascarpone carefully into the mixture with a spatula. Use a piping bag to pipe the crémeux into the silicone sphere. Leave to set overnight in the freezer. Remove the mold and, using a needle, dip the frozen spheres in the yellow glaze. Leave the glazed crémeux to defrost in the refrigerator.
EXTRA Thermomix silicone sphere mold, Ø 1 cm (3/8”) needle
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4.
CALAMANSI CRÉMEUX 1.5 g 7.5 g
gelatin powder water
Mix the gelatin powder with the cold water and bloom for 20 minutes.
100 g 40 g 1 1 1 3
calamansi puree orange juice vanilla bean clove sprig of mint cilantro leaves
Heat the calamansi puree together with the orange juice in a saucepan and add the herbs and spices. Infuse for 20 minutes and drain the mixture through a sieve.
80 g 95 g
egg sugar
Weigh out 120 g of the liquid and heat this in the Thermomix together with the egg and sugar to 84 °C (183 °F). Add the bloomed gelatin to the warm mixture and allow it to cool to 35 °C (95 °F).
80 g
butter (softened)
Add the softened butter and mix until smooth in the Thermomix. Using a piping bag, fill the 1-cm (3/8”) silicone sphere mold and chill in the freezer. Remove the spheres from the mold and allow to defrost in the refrigerator before using.
EXTRA sieve Thermomix silicone sphere mold, Ø 1 cm (3/8”)
5.
YELLOW GLAZE 4g 20 g
gelatin powder cold water
Mix the gelatin powder with the cold water and bloom for 20 minutes.
30 g 50 g 500 g 75 g 50 g 50 g
sugar glucose neutral mirror glaze passion fruit puree mango puree orange puree
In a saucepan, bring the sugar, glucose, neutral mirror glaze and fruit purees to a boil.
3g 55 g
Agar (Texturas) cold water
Whisk the Agar together with the cold water and bring to a boil, stirring continuously. Add the Agar mixture to the boiled puree and bring to a boil once again.
15 g 15 g 1g
mango vinegar lemon vinegar juice of 1 lemon yellow food coloring
Add the gelatin mixture, followed by the mango and lemon vinegar and the lemon juice. Add the yellow food coloring, mix well with a whisk and pour the mixture through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl. Allow to rest for 1 day and heat to 40 °C (104 °F) before use.
EXTRA fine-mesh sieve hand blender
PASSION FRUIT-LIMEBANANA ICE CREAM
6.
284 g 112 g 2.8 g
milk sugar Cremodan (stabilizer)
Bring the milk, sugar and Cremodan to a boil in a saucepan.
zest of 1 lime
Add the lime zest and infuse. Let the mixture cool.
80 g 28 g 32 g 32 g
passion fruit puree lime juice banana puree Prosorbet (Sosa)
Blend the mixture together with the remaining ingredients until smooth in the Thermomix and sieve the mixture through a fine-mesh sieve. Vacuum seal the sieved mixture to remove all the air bubbles, then churn in an ice cream maker.
EXTRA fine-mesh sieve Thermomix ice cream maker 14
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SOLEIL BONBON 42 g 42 g
Progianduia blanca, white chocolate with hazelnut paste (Sosa) white chocolate
Melt the white chocolate together with the Progianduia.
2g 10 g 10 g 10 g 5g 2g
yogurt powder (Yopols - Sosa) freeze-dried passion fruit Crispy (Sosa) freeze-dried banana Crispy (Sosa) freeze-dried yogurt Crispy (Sosa) popping sugar titanium dioxide
Briefly blend the three different Crispies into fine pieces in the Thermomix and then mix these together with the popping sugar, yogurt powder and titanium dioxide.
EXTRA Thermomix silicone sphere mold, Ø 1 cm (3/8”)
Add the Crispies to the melted chocolate and mix well with a spatula. Fill the 1-cm (3/8”) silicone sphere molds with the mixture and chill for at least 1 hour in the freezer. Serve frozen.
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LEMON CRÉMEUX 5g 25 g
gelatin powder cold water
Mix the gelatin powder with the cold water and bloom for 20 minutes.
250 g 71 g 2.5 pcs
water sugar lemongrass zest of 1 lime
Heat the water together with the sugar in a saucepan and add the lime zest and lemongrass. Infuse for 20 minutes. Strain the mixture and weigh out 270 g.
80 g 186 g 120 g
lime juice whole eggs sugar
Mix the infusion with the lime juice, eggs and sugar and heat in the Thermomix to 84 °C (183 °F). Add the bloomed gelatin to the warm mixture and allow it to cool to 35 °C (95 °F).
200 g 75 g
butter (softened) mascarpone
Add the softened butter together with the mascarpone and mix thoroughly in the Thermomix.
EXTRA sieve Thermomix silicone sphere mold, Ø 1 cm (3/8”)
Using a piping bag, fill the 1-cm (3/8”) silicone sphere molds and chill in the freezer. Remove from the mold and defrost before use.
9.
ALMOND MOUSSE 2g 10 g
gelatin powder water
Mix the gelatin powder with the cold water and bloom for 20 minutes.
120 g 55 g 210 g 18 g 105 g 75 g 75 g
almond milk lemon juice milk cream powder sugar egg yolk Mycryo powdered cocoa butter (Callebaut)
Heat the almond milk together with the lemon juice, milk, cream powder, sugar and egg yolk in the Thermomix to 84 °C (183 °F). Dissolve the bloomed gelatin together with the Mycryo into the mixture and allow it to cool to 28 °C (82 °F).
525 g
heavy or whipping cream, whipped
Fold the mixture into the whipped cream and pipe into the silicone quenelle molds using a piping bag. Freeze, remove from the mold, place on a wire rack and pour the yellow glaze over the quenelle. Defrost in the refrigerator before use.
EXTRA Thermomix piping bag wire rack silicone quenelle mold
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MANGO COULIS 100 g 50 g 25 g 25 g 4g 4g 5g 0.25 g
mango puree passion fruit puree sugar water mango vinegar almond milk lime juice Xantana xanthan gum (Sosa)
Mix all the ingredients and add the Xantana. Blend until smooth with a hand blender. Let the coulis rest overnight in the refrigerator before use.
EXTRA hand blender
11.
WHITE CHOCOLATE CRISP 300 g 100 g
Ivoire white chocolate (Valrhona) cocoa butter
EXTRA hand blender whipping siphon with 3 chargers vacuum-seal container vacuum pump
Melt the chocolate and the cocoa butter to 45 °C (113 °F) and blend to a smooth mixture with a hand blender. Pour the mixture into a whipping siphon and charge the siphon with 3 cartridges. Shake the shipping siphon and spray the mixture into a vacuum-seal container. Draw the mixture up using a vacuum pump and allow it to set in the freezer. Defrost the crisp to room temperature and break into pieces.
12.
SUGAR RING 250 g 2g
isomalt yellow powdered food coloring
EXTRA sugar thermometer silicone mat sugar lamp heat resistant gloves
Heat the isomalt to 165 °C (329 °F) in a heavy-bottomed pan. Add the yellow food coloring when the isomalt is almost at temperature and stir until smooth with a wooden spatula. Turn the isomalt out onto a baking sheet with a silicone mat and place it under a heat lamp. Wear heat resistant gloves to pull the sugar apart. Knead the melted sugar until it starts to glisten. Pull away a small piece of sugar and wrap it completely around a cylinder. Allow to cool and repeat the process. Store in a tightly sealed container.
G A R N I S H / Lemon cress / White currants / White flowers
1. 1. PANNA COTTA ̸ 2. MANGO VINEGAR GELÉE - INTERIOR 3. PASSION FRUIT CRÉMEUX ̸ 4. CALAMANSI CRÉMEUX 5. YELLOW GLAZE ̸ 6. PASSION FRUIT-LIME-BANANA ICE CREAM 7. SOLEIL BONBON ̸ 8. LEMON CRÉMEUX ̸ 9. ALMOND MOUSSE 10. MANGO COULIS ̸ 11. WHITE CHOCOLATE CRISP ̸ 12. SUGAR RING 16
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10.
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2.
Roll into a cylinder.
SUGAR RING STEP BY STEP
Knead the sugar.
1.
4.
3.
Roll out into equal cylinders under the heat lamp.
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Place the cylinders flush next to each other.
Place around a metal ring and gently pull until the sugar has a sparkly sheen.
6.
7.
Cut the ribbons into pieces and place them next to each other.
9.
5.
Gently pull the ends of the cylinders to form a ribbon.
8.
Roll the sugar completely around the ring.
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You now have a sugar ring.
SUNNY SIDE UP NUMBER OF SERVINGS: 4
1.
PANNA COTTA 112 g 57 g 1
milk cream vanilla bean
Mix the gelatin powder with the cold water and bloom for 20 minutes.
165 g 112 g 57 g 30 g 22 g
cream (cold) sugar yogurt lime juice yogurt powder (Yopols - Sosa)
In a saucepan, bring the milk to a simmer together with the cream and the vanilla bean. Dissolve the gelatin into the mixture and strain through a fine-mesh sieve.
415 g
heavy or whipping cream, whipped
Whisk the cold cream together with the sugar, Greek yoghurt, lime juice and yogurt powder and add to the warm creamy milk.
EXTRA fine-mesh sieve silicone mold (in the shape of a fried egg) piping bag
Finally, fold the whipped cream carefully into the mixture with a spatula. Use a piping bag to pipe the panna cotta into the silicone mold (shaped like a fried egg) and chill in the freezer. Unmold the panna cotta, place the still frozen ‘egg white’ on a plate and allow to defrost.
2.
MANGO COULIS 100 g 50 g 55 g 4g 4g 4g 0.25 g
mango puree passion fruit puree sugar water (1 part water, 1 part sugar) mango vinegar almond milk lime juice Xantana xanthan gum (Sosa)
EXTRA hand blender silicone dome mold, Ø 4 cm (1-1/2”) piping bag
Blend all the ingredients thoroughly with a hand blender. Leave the mixture to rest overnight.
Pipe the coulis into a 4-centimeter (1-1/2-inch) silicone dome mold and freeze.
3.
VEGETARIAN GELÉE 250 g 50 g 5g
water dessert wine Gelatina Vegetal vegetarian gelatin (Sosa)
EXTRA needle hand blender
In a pan, whisk the water together with the dessert wine and the Gelatina Vegetal and bring to a simmer. Use a needle to dip the frozen (dome-shaped) mango coulis in the gelée. Repeat this step so that two thin layers of gelée form around the mango coulis. Place the mango egg yolk in the middle of the panna cotta and allow to defrost.
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2. 1.
1. PANNA COTTA ̸ 2. MANGO COULIS ̸ 3. VEGETARIAN GELÉE 22
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